All the preseason games count the same

August 24, 2016

byMike Spofford

GREEN BAY — With the Packers’ third preseason game coming up on Friday, and the first roster reduction (to 75 players) looming by next Tuesday, GM Ted Thompson was asked if the later preseason games carry more weight than the ones earlier on the schedule in the final roster decisions.

“I don’t know if it’s more than others, more than the first two,” Thompson said on Wednesday. “When you get an opportunity to play with a 90-man roster, you want to try to step up and be seen.

“No more or no less than all the rest. It’s a culmination of all these things.”

As for how much a player’s current ability compared to another’s versus the future potential of the two players factors into a roster decision, Thompson reiterated it’s a cumulative assessment.

“You certainly weigh potential,” he said. “We understand these guys are not finished products, but we’re also able to see all the growth and development in these players, whether it’s three months since the draft or three years since an earlier draft.”

Is there a way to know how much time might be needed for a player’s potential to start to surface? Drafted in the fourth round in 2014, LB Carl Bradford is making his strongest bid yet for a roster spot, but the reality of the league is not everyone can be given that much time.

“I don’t think there’s a template that says you give them x amount of time and you’ll see what you need to see and that’s it,” he said. “It’s not a one size fits all kind of thing.”

Thompson also declined comment on the reports that Clay Matthews and Julius Peppers were scheduled to meet with NFL investigators over PED allegations in the media on Wednesday.